Saywell, Nicola LThomson, KatherineAdams, ThomasHill, Julia2025-09-292025-09-292024-11-08Disability and Rehabilitation, ISSN: 0963-8288 (Print); 1464-5165 (Online), Informa UK Limited, 47(14), 3548-3560. doi: 10.1080/09638288.2024.24237760963-82881464-5165http://hdl.handle.net/10292/19879Purpose: Health-related low back pain costs can be direct monetary, indirect monetary, or intangible, non-monetary. The purpose of this review was to identify the intangible, non-monetary costs of low back pain from the perspective of the individual. Materials and methods: A scoping review of literature was undertaken. Four databases were searched up to 6^th August 2024. Data were charted and coded using deductively derived categories in line with our purpose; additional categories were developed for text that did not fit these categories. Data were analysed using directed content analysis. Results: Forty-six studies met the inclusion criteria. Six categories were derived from the data, which express the experience of the person with low back pain: Perceptions of pain, Experience of healthcare, Becoming defined by low back pain, Life on hold, My social self, and Disrupted work life. Each category explored an aspect of life affected by low back pain. Conclusion: This review highlights that low back pain profoundly affects many areas, with implications for peoples’ personal, social, and work lives. Our findings suggest that suffering can be reduced when healthcare practitioners show empathy and legitimise the lived experience of low back pain, acknowledging the restrictions it imposes on peoples’ lives.© 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/Low back painintangible costspatient experienceperceptionsscoping review4201 Allied Health and Rehabilitation Science32 Biomedical and Clinical Sciences3202 Clinical Sciences42 Health SciencesPain ResearchBack PainChronic Pain3 Good Health and Well Being11 Medical and Health SciencesRehabilitation32 Biomedical and clinical sciences42 Health sciences44 Human societyHumansCost of IllnessLow Back PainHumansLow Back PainCost of IllnessHumansCost of IllnessLow Back PainJournal ArticleOpenAccess10.1080/09638288.2024.2423776